Climate change ‘greatest threat’ to Australia’s future and security, defence veterans warn

A group of former defence figures released an open letter calling on the country’s political leadership to make climate ‘an immediate security priority’

The comments came after the UN chief this week chided Australia for failing to define meaningful near-term measures to cut fossil fuel emissions

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A firefighter walks past burning trees during a battle against bush fires in Nowra, Australia’s New South Wales state. File photo: AFP

Published: 11:15am, 23 Mar 2022

Climate change is now “the greatest threat to the future and security” of Australia, senior defence figures in the country warned on Wednesday.

The group – which includes the former chief of the Australian Defence Force, Admiral Chris Barrie – used an open letter to call on Australia’s political leadership to make climate “an immediate security priority” ahead of federal elections expected in May.

The defence veterans and security experts pointed to the 2019 “Black Summer” bush fires and the floods that have recently devastated eastern Australia as climate disasters that required “major peacetime mobilisations” of Australian troops.

Australia’s government faced intense criticism after widespread flooding earlier this month, with affected communities denouncing the deployment of army and reserves as being too slow to aid rescues and recovery.

“Australia has no credible climate policy, leaving our nation unprepared for increasingly harsh impacts,” the letter read.

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